THE INDUSTRIAL DEMAND FOR AGRICULTURAL ECONOMISTS

Teaching/Communication/Extension/Profession,

CURRENT STATUS AND FUTURE DIRECTIONS OF AGRICULTURAL ECONOMICS PROGRAMS AT 1890 INSTITUTIONS: DISCUSSION

Teaching/Communication/Extension/Profession,

DISCUSSION: AGRICULTURAL TRANSITION AND IMPLICATIONS FOR AGRICULTURAL ECONOMICS EXTENSION PROGRAMS

Teaching/Communication/Extension/Profession,

THE INCIDENCE, NATURE, AND IMPLICATIONS OF PRICE-FIXING LITIGATION IN U.S. FOOD INDUSTRIES

Demand and Price Analysis, Political Economy,

CONSTRAINTS AND OPPORTUNITIES IN VEGETABLE TRADE

The objective of this article is to provide an overview on constraints and opportunities for increased vegetable trade in the Americas. The realization of this potential will likely be constrained by the extent of the market, immigration reform in the United States, lack of investment capital in Latin America, high transportation costs of fresh produce, and quality and health concerns of consumers. Opportunities are more apparent in selected world areas (Asia, European Community, United States, and Canada), for high quality, fresh rather than processed vegetables with safe or zero levels of pesticide and chemical residues, especially due to consumers' concern for a healthier diet. Whether or not the potential for expanding vegetable trade will be realized depends on how producers, traders, and governments respond to the challenges involved, especially those involving production and marketing strategies to respond to evolving consumers' tastes and preferences.International Relations/Trade,

World Sugar Markets and U.S. Sugar Policy

At a time when the sugar market in the United States is becoming even more competitive (under the 1996 Farm Bill), the European Union continues to maintain a high level of protectionism. Europe's sugar policies contain a complicated set of variable import duties, variable export subsidies, intervention prices, and threshold prices, plus type A quotas and type B quotas. Although historically the European union nations were net importers of sugar, they now export 3 tons of sugar for every 1 ton imported. This heavy level of subsidy of Europe distorts world market prices for sugar. It has been estimated that if Europe were to unilaterally liberalize its sugar policies, world raw sugar prices would increase to levels near or above current U.S. levels. Thus, all the rhetoric about the cost of the U.S. sugar program to American consumers would disappear. American consumers have a good deal in their sugar supply. In June of 1996, the U.S. House of Representatives passed an Agricultural Appropriations Bill that would impose price controls on raw sugar at 117.5 per cent of the loan rate, or a price cap of 21.15 cents per pound. Apparently, this legislation was intended to guarantee sugar refiners profitable operating margins and full capacity operations. While gross refiner margins were below normal in mid 1995, they are in mid 1996 over twice the level of normal profits. More importantly, imposing price controls raises the ugly head of government intervention in resource allocation and inevitably leads to inequities among market participants. It is also contrary to the general direction of U.S. farm policies that had been moving toward freer markets. In terms of likely impacts, the 1996 Farm Bill is expected to eliminate the incentives for expansion of beet sugar processing capacity simply to establish historic production bases. This legislation will also increase price risk and possibly limit borrowing by growers. The "safety net" of non-recourse loans disappears for U.S. sugar growers if foreign sugar imports fall below 1.5 million tons. This situation would result in "recourse" loans or no safety net at all. Given a larger than expected domestic sugar crop, prices and returns to growers would be disastrously low. Environmental issues are not uniquely a Florida problem. Rational thinking and science need to be a cornerstone of solving problems in this area

Long Run Career Planning

Estab·lishing lifetime career goals are extremely important. Those goals may be redirected over time as conditions and circumstances change. The first three years as a professional agricultural economist are most critical in establishing reputation and professional image. Career development can be enhanced with a few carefully executed job changes. Various factors, however, restrict or constrain job mobility. Fellowships and sabbaticals are strongly recommended for career renewal and/ or redirection. There are several preconditions for achieving success as an administrator. There is a noticeable lack of flexibility in moving from positions in government and private industry to academia. However, there is some flexibility in moving from academia to government and industry. Inflexibility in movement from one type of employer to another is rooted in the performance standards of each type. Dual career households must expect added complexity to long range career planning